Twilight Revolution
by Lorelei Candice Black
Summary: Bella spent her entire life not knowing who her father was and trying to be the best at everything. When her mother gets sick, Bella finally learns that her father is Miles. She arrives in his hide out in Chicago soon after he left with Charlie to look for Danny and keeps on missing him until... Goes quickly over season 1, will take more time on season 2. Rating might go up later.
1. Chapter 1

**_Twilight Revolution_**

**_Introduction:_**

When her mother Renee got sick, Bella wasn't devastated or even sad. Her mother had never been a good one. Bella had basically had to raise herself, hoping that someday, the truth about her father would be revealed to her. She had always had the same dream, that her father would come out of nowhere and rescue her, take her with him far away from her mother where she'd be happy forever but how could he when he didn't even know she existed.

Until then, she had been helped by her mother's neighbors, the Cullen's, in raising herself the right way.

Carlisle Cullen was the father of the family that lived right next door from Bella and Renee and the local doctor. He had been, in his youth, some sort of prodigy and used to work in one of the best hospital of the country but after the black-out, he moved his family in their vacation house, far away from the chaos of the big cities and had opened a practice there. He had taught Bella everything he knew and when his sons trained to defend themselves and to hunt, she was with them, learning everything that could be useful eventually either for her self-defense or to feed herself.

Their mother, Esmee, had taught Bella everything she knew about plants, which was a lot. Which one healed, which one hurt, which one could be consumed and how… She had learned everything from that family, along with her friend Alice who preferred to pretend she wanted to learn while she tried to win one of the Cullen boy's heart.

For a while, Bella even dated one of their sons, Edward Cullen, the youngest, the one who was just a couple of years older than her. It could have become serious between them, she really loved him but he had broken her heart, choosing to join the Monroe Militia when he knew how she felt about these men. She hadn't seen or talked to him since he had left and every time he came home to visit his parents, she would stay away, ignoring his presence completely. From what she had overheard from his brothers and his parents, he had had several girlfriends. Tanya, Jessica, Lorene, Kate, Irina… None of them serious. Bella even wondered why she cared to remember their names. Edward might have been her first boyfriend and her first love but he didn't mean anything to her anymore.

When her mother got sick a few weeks ago, along with a few town's people, Bella, who was very good at healing people and knew of a way to ease her mother's pain, had traded her science against the truth of her father's identity and it had taken her mother a couple of weeks of unbearable pain and fever before she finally agreed to her daughter's deal and told her that her father was Miles Matheson, the man who used to rule by Monroe's side and was hiding somewhere, on the run from Monroe himself with a price over his head.

She had given her daughter this news with a wide smile, hoping to torture her daughter with the fact that her father was friends with a man she hated. She knew how Bella hated Monroe, his republic and his militia. She figured that she would also hate who her father was and be sad about it.

Renée had been sure that the news of her daughter's father's identity wouldn't change anything in their dynamic and that Bella would keep on taking care of her, cooking for her and everything she had done since she was old enough to walk but she had been wrong. Bella had left soon after, leaving to her mother only a couple of doses of medicine before she packed most of her things in a large backpack and went on the road, looking for her father in hope that he'd be happy to see her and that he'd want to know more about her.

* * *

**So, this is only an introduction to the story. I don't know how long it's going to be.**

**Please let me know what you think in a review.**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	2. Chapter 2

The next few months were very hard on Bella and it seemed to her that they were years instead of months.

She had first gone to Philadelphia, the center of Monroe's power and after a while of asking questions to people without looking too suspicious, had learned that there were rumors of Miles Matheson hiding in Chicago. She had rushed there as fast as she could but when she arrived, finally finding the right bar, was told that he had run off with a group of people after killing a few militia men.

Of course she was happy that they hadn't caught him but sad that she had missed him. Then she remembered that in the books she loved to read, nothing came easily. If she wanted to spend time with her father and get to know him, she probably had to go through some trials, survive the journey, make an effort, go out of her way and fight. She was ready to go through hell if it meant she got to spend some time with her father.

After that, Bella always missed her father by a few days and even if she learned a few things about her father by talking to people, she still grew tired of always being late.

On the way, she learned that she had cousins, Danny and Charlie and that her father was helping Charlie get Danny back from Monroe, who wanted him for some reasons.

Her first idea had been to simply go back to Philadelphia and wait for her father there but it hadn't worked.

She had found a place to stay in the city, a place that was under the radar, but it was far away from Monroe's palace and even if she tried, she couldn't get close to the man or even to the people he hung out with. To top it all, Edward was stationed in the city and she had to go out of her way to avoid him, knowing he'd get suspicious if he saw her in a town she hated, near a man she hated.

Well, maybe she hadn't tried hard enough to get closer but she didn't want to grow too close to people her father was fighting against. She didn't want it to come back to bite her in the face.

When Miles did come, she didn't hear about it until he was running out of the town, on the opposite side from the one she was in of course and then she had to chase him again, Monroe's pursuit of him making it only harder, slower and more dangerous.

Being a girl alone on the road didn't make it any easier. People believed her to be an easy target because of her small size and even if she did know how to defend herself, it was tiring to always be on her guard, to always have to look out for potential threats. Plus, it did delay her.

A few weeks after leaving Philadelphia, she learned that her cousin Danny died while helping the rebels, killed by Monroe's men and that Miles was now working with the rebels, always on the move, trying to bring Monroe down any way he could.

Bella didn't mind.

She had hidden and healed a few rebels over the years, ignoring her mother's complains and even hiding it from her most of the time, she knew a few of them and they trusted her, she knew it. They knew her name, that Bella Swan was skilled, generous and willing to help them and she hoped it would help her find her father before someone got him killed in his fight against Monroe's army but it took her a while before she could find a clue that would really lead her to her father.

Standing over her cousin's grave, Bella wanted to do something nice for him. It was customary to place flowers on top of it and the ones that were already on it, probably placed by her aunt and cousins, maybe even her father, were starting to dry up. Deciding that her cousin deserved fresh flowers and knowing that his family wouldn't be able to give him some anytime soon, she went in the woods and ended up finding a few bushes of wild roses. It was the first flowers she crossed and she didn't want to waste too much time looking for something different. They were very pretty and so Bella dug up one of the bush and replanted it behind Danny's grave. He'd at least have fresh flowers in the spring.

.

After months of chase, Bella was sure that it was it.

She had just fought 3 men with Monroe's mark on their arm and after knocking them out, thanking internally Carlisle Cullen, their ex neighbor that had helped her learn how to fight at the same time he had taught his 3 sons, she followed their tracks back and found herself in front of a large building that men had called "_The tower_", even though it didn't go up in the sky.

According to what the men were saying before they found her hiding in the bushes and attacked her, trying to take advantage of her so called weaken woman state, they were saying that Monroe was on the run and that Miles was in "The Tower", fighting other people whose name she didn't care to remember, even if one was familiar and one she had heard a lot in the past few months: _Tom Neville_.

She truly didn't know why that man was still alive. If she didn't like killing people, Bella still believed that Neville was one of those men that caused more trouble alive and always found a way to survive, a way that always included hurting the people around him, not caring if they had helped him or not. He only cared about himself and his own survival. Bella was sure he'd be capable of sacrificing his own son in order to assure his survival. The only cure to people like him was a bullet in his head.

After fighting her assailants and knocking them out, being left standing with a few bruises and cuts, Bella ran in the direction the 3 men had come from and now she was facing the building, next to an empty military camp where the only thing out of place were the dead bodies lying on the floor.

"Please be open… Please…" Bella begged as she tried to open the door but of course it was locked and she knew that she wouldn't be able to use the electronic lock.

Trying her luck, she simply knocked on the door, then pounded and called out for about an hour but nobody came and she just knew that once again, she had been too late. Her father had left the place and she had no idea where to look in order to find him next.

If she was a good tracker, Bella knew that she had no chance of finding out which footprints were her father's and whose were soldiers or other people's. There just was too many for her to decipher.

Desperate, Bella turned to the woods behind her and yelled with everything she had:

"Miles! I'm your daughter! Miles!"

She heard her own voice but deep down she knew that if it had carried away, her father was already too far to have heard it clearly. She had missed her father, again.

Letting out a sad breath, Bella couldn't help it, she started crying as she let herself down on the floor, in the middle of Monroe's empty camp, surrounded by dead bodies of young men who had made the mistake of believing in Monroe.

"At least I have a reason to cry, I'm dying. What's wrong with you?" A weak voice said from around her.

"Who said that?" Bella asked, standing up and looking around her, her sword at the ready.

"I did. Down here." One of the bodies said weakly, obviously having a hard time talking.

One of the men she had thought was dead was actually still alive. He was very pale, bleeding heavily through the stomach and the pool of blood around him was huge.

"What's wrong? Besides the bleeding I mean?" She asked him while she got her little healing bag out and started to see if she could help him.

"I can't move."

"I… I'm sorry… I can't help you… The bullet hit a big artery… You've lost too much blood." She told him, truly sorry not to be able to help someone.

"I knew it somehow… Now, why are you crying?" he asked her and, seeing as he was dying anyway, she figured that she could trust him not to spill her secret and she told him.

"I've spent my entire life looking for my father. A few months ago my mother finally tells me his name, it's Miles Matheson and so I go looking for him. Ever since that day I've always been a few days too late, always getting somewhere a few days after he was gone… Today wasn't any different… Only this time I don't know where to look." She explained.

"He walked right by me with his fat friend, his niece and Rachel Matheson. The blond lady looked out of it, a bit crazy or in shock or something. They were talking about taking her home to her father." He told her, speaking slowly and taking big breath between words.

"Do you know where that is?" Bella asked him softly, trying not to get her hopes up.

If she had learned through her travels that Rachel Matheson's maiden name was Porter, she had no idea where her father lived.

"Willoughby, Texas." He replied.

"Thank you." She smiled.

"I guess you'll be leaving now." He asked her.

"Not yet, no. I'm not about to leave you here alone… I'll wait for you to..."

"Die?" He cut her off.

"I didn't want to put it that way but yes." She nodded.

"Thank you."

Then Bella started a fire near him, dragging the other bodies away and she kept on talking to the hurt soldier until he simply stopped talking and he was dead.

Before she left, Bella took the time to look through the camp for something of value to take with her, something that could be useful for the big trip she had ahead of her.

Searching the dead soldiers and the tents, she ended up with a few diamonds, ammunition for her gun, even though she liked her sword and knives much better, and some canned food. Obviously people had left in a hurry and if some soldiers had tried to take as much as possible, there was still plenty left behind for her to take with her and fill her backpack to the maximum.

Now started what she hoped was the last step before she finally found her father. After all of that, she hoped he'd at least want to talk to her, give her a chance.

* * *

**Second part complete. The real changes to the series' story line start now.**

**Who do you think will be paired with whom?**

**Don't forget to leave me a review please!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	3. Chapter 3

The walk all the way to Texas and to Willoughby was long and Bella got delayed several times, mainly by people trying to hurt her, thinking that she was an easy prey, but after 2 months, Bella was finally in front of the gates of the little town of Willoughby.

Of course the gates were closed and heavily guarded, they didn't let just anyone inside and on the way, she had learned that the new government that had taken power after the downfall of the Georgia Federation and of the Monroe Republic, _The Patriots_, had put a price on Miles and Rachel Matheson's head. Bella had the posters in her bag to prove it.

Did he even give his real name in this town? Could she ask for him at the gates or should she ask to see one of the others that were traveling with him and hope they let her in? She knew that Rachel's maiden name was Porter and if they came here to see her father, maybe they had all used that name but how could she be sure?

Taking a big breath and hoping that for once luck was on her side, Bella walked to the guards, her best innocent and weak face on.

"Hi… My name is Bella Swan. I'm a healer… I've learned things here and there and heard there was a doctor here… I was wondering if I could come in and ask him to teach me a few more things…" She asked the guard.

"Why?" One of the guards asked her.

"It's what I do. I don't have anywhere to go or stay so I travel, help people who need to be healed on the way and when I meet an actual doctor, I try to learn as much as possible with him… It's not like I can go to college or anything. It's the next best thing, right?" She asked, trying her best to look innocent, which wasn't hard.

"I'll go and ask Doctor Porter." One of the guard said before he walked away, leaving Bella at the door with the other guard.

He was nice enough and the conversation flowed easily until the other guard came back.

"Doc said to let her in and show her to his place. He's in the middle of a consult but he'd like to meet her." He said.

"Thank you." Bella smiled.

The guard who had gone to ask the doctor if he agreed to her proposition was the one who showed her to the doctor's house (and office) and on the way, while talking, she learned that she had been right, she was in the right place and if she didn't have confirmation of Miles being here, she learned that Rachel was still there and that her daughter had left, alone, not too long ago.

"You go ahead and walk right in, I've got to get back to the gates. Doctor Porter may be old but he's a nice man. He's agreed to help you, it means he'll help you learn whatever you want to learn." The guard told her.

"Thank you. Really." She smiled brightly, her heart beating faster than ever, knowing that on the other side of the door, might be her father, or at least a way to find him soon.

Bella knocked on the door and a blond woman, probably Rachel, opened it.

"You must be Bella. I'm Rachel. My father will be with you in a moment. Come on in."

Bella smiled and walked inside, feeling like she would crumble and break if she learned that her father wasn't here.

"It was nice of your father to agree to help me." Bella said as she put her bag down on the floor near the door.

"Well, it's the first time he gets a proposition like yours but he's old and the world will always need doctors, might as well train the young ones to be as competent as they can be." Rachel replied with a nice smile.

"And it's so rare to have a young woman wanting to learn, I had to agree. How old are you?" The man said from the doorway.

"Doctor Porter! I'm 20…. Well, 21 now I guess… I haven't really seen time pass in the last year or so…" Bella replied as she went to shake his hand before she sat down on the armchair he offered her.

"Just like Charlie…" Rachel breathed out.

After introductions were done, Bella knew she had to tell the truth now before it got carried away.

"I… I have to confess something… I've trained with a doctor from my village, his name was Doctor Carlisle Cullen and he was some sort of prodigy when he was young. He graduated from Harvard and was known to be one of the best doctor in the country before the black out. I was a good student of his. I am a healer and am always willing to learn more but that's not why I'm here." Bella said nervously.

"Then why are you here?" Rachel asked her before her father could ask the question.

"I… I know you're Rachel Matheson. I've been on your trail for a while… Well, not yours exactly… I… I'm looking for Miles Matheson." She said, knowing she was sounding suspicious.

"Why is that?" Doctor Porter asked while Rachel stood up and reached for a hidden gun.

"Listen, I'm not here to hurt anyone, not even him. I've left my bag near the door so I can't reach for my gun. I've opened my jacket so you can see my only weapon is a sword that I can't reach without you seeing it. Please just tell me if he's here or if I've missed him again. For over a year now I've been following his trail, always missing him, arriving shortly after he left… I just need to talk to him…" Bella said and without controlling it, she started getting tears in her eyes and Rachel noticed it.

"Why?" Rachel asked, giving the gun to her father, who still held it but didn't point it at Bella.

"I've spent all of my life not knowing who my father was, my mother refused to tell me… Last year she got sick and I told her I'd give her the medication I had only if she told me who my father was. It's not ethical, I know, but I was desperate to know who he was, to get to know him… It took her two weeks in pain before she finally told me that it was… that… That Miles Matheson was my father. I immediately left to look for him… I… I'm just tired of being alone and walking, getting attacked because men think I'm an easy target… I'm tired of having to fight… I just want to meet him… Talk to him… At least tell him that I exist… Please just tell me that he's still here." Bella cried, exhausted.

She looked desperate and younger than she really was.

"Your mother, who is she?" Rachel asked.

"Renee Swan." Bella replied, figuring that Rachel might know Mile's old friends. She was his sister in law after all.

"I remember her… Never liked her." Rachel nodded.

"Then we have something in common. I basically had to raise myself and take care of her since I could walk and talk." Bella whispered.

"You're not too late. He's still here. Dad, can you go and get him? I'll stay here with her." Rachel asked and the doctor nodded, giving the gun back to his daughter who put it back in its hiding place.

"You've really been following him for that long?" Rachel asked her softly.

"Yes… When I learned that he was looking for his nephew taken by Monroe I figured I'd save myself some time and just wait in Philadelphia for him to come and get Danny back or attack Monroe but by the time I heard that Miles Matheson had broken in and was running away with prisoners, you were all already leaving town, on the opposite side of town from mine… So it was back to following your trails… I'm sorry about Danny by the way… I… I knew you wouldn't be able to visit his grave often so I planted a wild rose bush next to it…" Bella replied.

"Thank you. I'm sure Miles had no idea about you." Rachel said.

"I know… That's one of the rare things I knew about him from the beginning: he didn't know about me and my mother was mad at him because he didn't quit the army for her when she asked him to."

"Yes, she broke up with him for it but I don't think he really loved her. They weren't that serious." Rachel nodded just as footsteps were heard on the porch of the house.

They both stopped talking and turned to look at the door. Rachel's father was the first to walk through the door, followed closely by a tall man Bella recognized as Miles from the one picture she could get her hands on, an old one.

"Bella, I told Miles that you were looking for him and wanted to talk to him. That's all I told him." The doctor said as Miles entered the room with his hand on the handle of his sword.

"How about we give them some privacy, dad? I think it's going to be difficult enough as it is…" Rachel suggested and they both left.

"So, who are you and why is it going to be difficult?" Miles asked her as he sat in the armchair that was in front of hers.

"My name is Bella Swan… Well, Isabella but I go by Bella… I'm Renee Swan's daughter and I'm 21 years old." Bella said, hoping it would be enough to make him guess why she was here.

"I… I'm sorry but even if I know your mother, why are you looking for me? I haven't seen her in a very long time. I have nothing to do with her." he asked her.

"About 21 years, right?" Bella asked him.

"Probably… Wh… Why are you here?"

Bella could see the wheels turning in his head.

"I grew up not knowing who my father was, no matter how often I'd asked, my mother always refused to tell me… About a year ago, she got sick and since I had the medicine she needed, I traded it for the information… It took her two weeks of pain before she agreed…" Bella explained.

"Oh my God…" Miles whispered.

"The name she gave me, well, spat at me is more accurate, is yours. Miles Matheson. So I packed a bag and went to look for you, always getting places a few days after you had left… I actually arrived at the Tower only hours after you left… I… I just wanted to tell you… that you're my father… and to get to know you, if you want…" Bella explained.

"I… I wasn't expecting anything like this…" He whispered.

"Do you at least believe me?" She asked him, her voice almost pleading.

"I don't have a choice… You look exactly like my mother when she was young, except for the eyes… You have my father's eyes… My eyes…" He replied.

"I don't know what I would have done if I had learned you weren't here… I… Before I forget, I don't know if you know about it but… On the way, I fought with a man… He turned out to be a bounty hunter and when I knocked him out, I searched his bag and found posters… I took them, figuring you probably didn't know that the Patriots were looking for you and Rachel." Bella said.

"They are? Why?" He asked.

"I have them in my bag… I can get them if you want?"

She was giving him a choice, just in case he didn't trust her but instead he decided to follow his blood and nodded, calling Rachel back in the room.

Bella came back in the living room with her backpack and handed them the WANTED posters she had taken, which included Monroe's.

"There wasn't one for Charlie?" Rachel asked Bella.

"I had the same reaction when I found them and searched twice to make sure that I didn't miss it but I didn't find any… Either they're not looking for her or this guy didn't have it… Your other friend, the one who was traveling with you… He wasn't in any of the posters either." Bella replied before opening the bottom pocket of her backpack and took out a plastic bag.

"What is it?" Rachel asked her as Miles looked up from the posters to see what she was doing.

"I always knew that one day, one way or another, I'd find a way to find my father. When I was 5 I was sure it would involve fairies and wishes to a shooting star in the middle of a cold dark night but it didn't matter, I never gave up hope… When I was 6, I could already write pretty well and I decided to write a letter to my father and put it in a box I would give him when I found him. After two letters, I changed it into a diary… I placed them in this box, writing the big events of my life inside, hoping that one day, I'd be able to give it to him, make him feel as though he hadn't missed anything…" As she spoke, Bella took the wooden box out of the bag.

On the top was engraved FOR DADDY. Bella opened it, checking that all of her old diaries were still inside and closed it again, handing it to Miles.

"It's yours now. There are a couple of things inside too… Father's day gifts I made with my school when I was a kid." Bella said trying to hide a yawn.

"Thank you." Miles replied, emotions tick in his voice as he looked at the girl that was his daughter, his blood.

"You must be exhausted and hungry. I'll go and get you something to eat, then you'll go and catch some sleep in Charlie's room." Rachel decided.

"Thank you." Bella nodded.

"You do look tired… When was the last time you slept?" Miles asked her, the unopened box on his lap, under his hands.

"I haven't slept more than 2 hours a day in 3 weeks… I guess it's catching up to me now that I know that… I'm safe." Bella replied.

"Of course you are. I… You eat whatever Rachel brings you, then you get some sleep, we'll talk when you wake up, alright kid?" He asked her and she smiled, happy that he at least was worried about her well being.

He cared.

Her mother never had.

"Okay." She said as Rachel came in with a plate full of sandwiches.

* * *

**So, he took the news pretty well...**

**They will have more time together later. Next chapter will pick up right as this one ends.**

**Leave me a review and you'll make me very happy.**

**Love,**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	4. Chapter 4

Bella ate a few sandwiches and told her father and her aunt a little about what she had gone through in the past year, who she had met that they knew, how she had tracked them, never giving up. Gene joined them and when Bella was done eating, the conversation was still flowing easily but Miles interrupted it.

"Alright, that's enough for now. Bella, I'll show you to Charlie's room. You can get some sleep. We'll have all the time to talk tomorrow." Miles announced, standing up and placing his daughter's bag on his shoulder to carry it upstairs for her, the box tucked under his arm.

"Here it is." He said, opening the door and following her inside, placing the bag near the bed while Bella went to sit on it.

"Miles! Thank you. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't believed me…" She said just as he was about to leave the room.

"You've been through a lot… But you're okay now. You're not alone. Not anymore." Miles told her softly, amazed at the instant connection he had with this girl, his daughter.

"I… Would you stay? At least until I fall asleep? Please?" She asked him, feeling like a little girl for a moment.

"Of course… I can do that." He nodded.

It was new for Miles and he was uneasy about being a father but he was more ready for it now than he was before Charlie came into his life. Charlie had prepared him for that without knowing it.

Grabbing a chair, Miles placed it at the foot of the bed and sat on it while placing the box on the mattress. Bella lied down and turned to face her father. As soon as her head it the pillow, sleep stated taking her and she barely managed to mutter "I'm glad I finally found you daddy. Please don't leave me." before she fell asleep.

"I'm not going anywhere Bella. I'm right here." He replied.

He knew that she was asleep but he couldn't bring himself to leave. Part of him was angry at Renee for having hidden this from him when she had ways of contacting him but he couldn't concentrate on that right now. He had a daughter. He was a father and for what he had heard about her so far, he had every reason to be proud of the woman she had become on her own.

"You're okay Miles?" Rachel asked him from the doorway in a soft whisper about an hour after Bella fell asleep.

"I think so, yes. She asked me not to leave… I'll stay until she wakes up." Miles replied.

"Of course. I… I'm sorry you couldn't know about her sooner…" Rachel told him.

"Me too… I've heard about her you know… Bella Swan, the young woman who was a great doctor… I just never thought she was related to Renee or that she was my daughter… I didn't know to be proud back then…" he told Rachel.

"Really? Where did you hear about her?" She asked him, still whispering so they didn't wake Bella up.

"Back when I was with the Rebels, when Charlie and I went with Nora to give that big gun to the Rebels. They said she hid a few of them back then, healed them, helped them be safe… I heard them saying that one of them went to get her at some point but that they heard she had left her town… Now I know that she was looking for me… If I had stayed just a couple more days in any of those places we stopped in… She could have been with us much sooner. With me…"

"She's with you now… Did you look inside the box?" She asked him.

"Yes, I started reading the first journal." He replied.

"I'll leave you to it then. Call if you need anything." She said before she left, giving him a candle to light later when it got too dark to read.

.

While his daughter slept, speaking the occasional word in her sleep, Miles went through the diaries one by one, learning a lot about his daughter.

The first thing he learned was that Renee had definitely not been a good mother and that Bella had had to raise herself and her mother at the same time. Bella would have been better off with him. Obviously his daughter was smart and a very gifted child though. The second obvious thing was that she already loved him, without knowing anything about him and that she had wished he would come and find her ever since she was a little girl.

As he read, he learned about her friends, her boyfriend, Edward, with whom she broke things off when he decided to join to Monroe Militia and changed behavior to become an ass. He followed her training with Doctor Cullen and his wife, which she started when she was 12 and he read how she learned how to fire a gun, sword fight and fist fight. He followed her dreams and hopes that her mother would change, that she'd find love, and, always, that she'd find some sort of clue to guide her to her father.

She had also written down her likes and dislikes, the fact that she spoke in her sleep and that she was tired of always having to be the one to take care of people, especially her mother.

"My daddy will kick your ass." Bella muttered in her sleep and it made Miles smile.

On the last page of the third journal, there was a list of people he could kick the ass off. Some names where checked and he figured that she had probably taken care of it herself. He smiled when he saw the name of her first boyfriend, Edward Cullen, on the list 5 times. She must be really mad at him.

His daughter seemed to be a strong, smart, independent young woman and he couldn't wait to spend more time with her, to find out more about her.

Looking up to stretch his neck, he realized that the sun was rising again. He hadn't realized that he had spent the entire night reading.

In the box, he found a handmade ashtray, a knitted tie and a leather belt with "Happy father's day" engraved on it.

"The belt used to be knitted as well, but I replaced it with one in leather when I learned how to do it." Bella spoke, making him look at her.

"How did you sleep?" he asked her.

"Better than I have in a while. You stayed…" she noticed.

"I promised you I'd stay… I was going to go through the box anyway, might as well do it here." He replied.

Bella sat up in the bed, not knowing what to do or what to say at the moment.

"Rachel brought you some water and soap earlier. I'll let you clean up and change if you want. I'll wait for you downstairs, alright?" He asked her.

"Sure… Thanks."

.

When Bella arrived downstairs, Gene, Rachel and Miles were waiting for her around a table filled with what looked like breakfast.

"I slept through the afternoon and the night?" She asked them after greeting Rachel and Gene.

"Yes you did, but it looked like you needed it." Gene replied.

"Thanks for letting me stay in Charlie's room." Bella told them.

"Of course, you're family now Bella. I'm sure your cousin wouldn't mind." Rachel replied, making the young woman smile happily.

While eating their breakfast, they went back to their previous discussion and Bella answered happily all of their questions. Gene sounded impressed with everything Bella knew for her young age and he didn't hide it. She had done several medical procedure he, himself, tried to avoid because they were difficult and he wasn't used to them. If anything, he felt like Bella was the one who would end up teaching him a few things.

"So, now that you've found me, what are your plans?" Miles asked her later as they both walked through town together.

He was afraid she would leave soon and if it was the case, he knew he'd have to say goodbye to Rachel because there was no way he was letting his daughter leave without him so soon after finding him.

"My plans stopped when I found you… I figured after that it would depend on you… I know that I'd like to stay with you but if you want me to leave, I will." She replied.

"I think that I'd like you to stay here too." He smiled.

"I'm glad you feel that way." She said.

They walked for a while longer until Bella asked him:

"Do you think that Charlie is safe?"

"She can take care of herself. Why do you ask?"

"It's just… I've been thinking about it ever since I found the Wanted posters… Why would they look for the two of you and not for her? Maybe that guy just didn't have her poster or lost it or something… If she's all alone with people looking for her…" Bella started but stopped.

"I don't think they're looking for her but she's a smart kid. If they are, she'll escape them and come back here." He replied.

"I hope so." Bella nodded.

* * *

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**Lorelei Candice Black**


	5. Chapter 5

A few weeks passed and turned into months. Bella and Miles were closer than ever. She now called him "_dad_" and they had the father-daughter relationship Bella had always hoped they'd have when she found him. She was happier than she had ever been.

Miles was happy as well and even Rachel had grown to care for the girl who now called her '_Aunt Rachel'_ on a daily basis.

Bella spent most of her days helping Gene healing the people of the town or in the woods, looking for herbs that could help them make medicine. She also spent a lot of time with her father, getting to know him better, learning how much they had in common and perfecting her sword fight with him. In order to spend even more time with her, Miles often went with Bella when she went to look for herbs to make medicines.

Since she felt bad intruding in Charlie's bedroom in case her cousin came back, Bella had settle herself in another room that used to be empty and was just as happy in it.

At some point, the town had been attacked by a warrior clan from the Plains Nation, trying to take their food from them. Bella had joined her father and the few capable men in defending the town, showing her father how good she was but sadly, their opponents were numerous and a few people were killed or hurt. Bella was still busy fighting men of the warrior clan when a few of them took her father (along with others).

Immediately, Bella and Rachel decided to go after them, to rescue her father and Gene managed to convince a few other men to join them. While the good doctor stayed behind with the Sheriff to help the town get some order back, Bella, Rachel and 5 other men managed to leave only a couple of hours after the attack and thanks to Bella's tracking skills, which she only perfected during the time she was looking for her father, they quickly found the clan's hide out.

.

Miles was being held captive by the warrior clan and right now, all he managed to learn was that their leader, Titus Andover, took some of his prisoners, one by one, through the big red door and that they never returned. He knew by the way the guards looked at him that he was next on their list and he couldn't let that happen, not when he had a daughter waiting for him. Hell, knowing her determination, she was probably looking for him right now. For her, he had to try to escape.

Suddenly, just as Miles managed to open the lock of his cage, he heard guns being shot and somehow he knew that it was Bella. He could feel it.

"Dad!" She exclaimed as she rushed to hug him while Rachel used keys she had taken from a dead clan member to open the other cages.

"Bella! You know, in a normal world, the father is the one who rescues his daughter." He joked as they fought Titus's men.

"Well, you never know, the day might come." She replied, knocking a man out and finding herself face to face with Titus Andover himself.

"No Bells, this one's mine." Miles told her and she nodded.

The fight lasted about 15 minutes and soon, Bella, Rachel, Miles, the prisoners they rescued and the men they came with were standing while everyone else was dead or had run away to hide.

"I think we're in trouble." Bella said.

"More trouble than we already are in?" Rachel asked with a smirk.

"This man right there." Bella pointed at one of Titus's men.

"He was Titus's second in command I think." Miles added.

"Well, he was a member of a group of patriots I crossed path with a few weeks before I found you, right after they took power." Bella informed them.

"Are you sure?" Miles asked her.

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Well, another reason to be suspicious of them and not to trust them. Now come on, take all the ammunition and weapons you can. If you see food, might as well take it too. We'll put it in one of their wagons and bring it back to town with us. We should be quick before the other members of the clan come back or decide to stop hiding and attack us back." Miles ordered and everyone nodded and got into action.

"Are you okay dad?" Bella asked him.

"A little bruising here and there, a few scraps but otherwise I'm fine." He said, reassuring her while checking if she, too, was alright.

Soon, they were all making their way back to Willoughby with a wagon full of food and a few weapons. They were welcomed back in town like heroes and that day, they had a little party to celebrate their survival.

However, their happiness was short lived.

The Patriots came a few days later, a large group of them. As soon as they set foot in the little town, they set an American flag down, obviously taking control of the town and claiming it their own. They assured everyone that they were coming to kill Titus Andover and his warrior clan and that even if Titus and a few of his men were dead, there was still a lot of people from his warrior clan that survived and were hiding and needed to be dealt with.

As they tried to appear as heroes to everyone, Miles, Bella, Rachel and even Aaron were suspicious of the Patriots' role in the recent events.

"We should investigate. Try to find out what it is they want and why they're here." Bella whispered a few days later.

"Rachel and I need to keep a low profile though, try not to get noticed too much because those people are the ones who are looking for us and we still don't know why." Miles reminded them.

"True. So, how do we proceed?" Bella asked her father.

"I'll go and check out Titus' compound, see if there's anything in his office, behind this red door, that could give us any clue about the patriots and their plans. I think that's all we can do for now. Stay out of trouble." Miles said before he kissed Bella's forehead and walked off.

"They took a small building next to the sheriff's office and declared it their office. We should look inside while they're distracted." Rachel told Bella after Aaron left to join his girlfriend at the school.

"Dad won't like it." Bella smiled.

"So, am I doing this alone?" Rachel asked her.

"They can't find you looking through their stuff. You'll be the lookout, I'll search the building." Bella decided.

"Miles won't like it." Rachel shook her head with a smirk, mocking Bella's earlier warning.

"He doesn't have to find out." Bella replied.

"Already hiding things from your father?"

"Isn't that the key to every father-daughter relationship?" Bella asked her with a large smile.

"It usually involves cigarettes, boys , alcohol or school notices." Rachel replied.

"Well, I had to try and be creative, didn't I?" The young girl smiled before they started observing the office the Patriots had taken a few days ago to decide on a plan.

While Rachel was on the lookout, ready to hit the door with her foot if a Patriot came, Bella searched through the papers but unfortunately, didn't see much that could help her in any way. She did see a weird logo though. An eye inside a pyramid and she looked at it well to be able to draw it later. She was about to open another drawer when there was a hit on the door and Rachel opened it:

"They're coming back, hurry, come on." Rachel said.

"I haven't found much, just a logo really… I didn't get a chance the read the few papers that were actually in English. The rest looked in some sort of code or another language. It definitely wasn't Morse, Latin or Greek because I would have recognized it." Bella explained as she went out the door discreetly and went home with her aunt.

"It's okay, we'll find something eventually. Maybe Miles will have more luck than us." Rachel reassured her.

* * *

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**Lorelei Candice Black**


	6. Chapter 6

Miles walked in Titus's compound, the same one he had been so happy to leave and even if the place appeared deserted, he decided to be discreet and try not to be seen just in case someone was watching the place.

Walking through the large red door, he was surprised to see a woman on a bed.

"Who are you? What's wrong with you?" He asked her.

"I'm… Titus's wife… When the Patriots came to take everyone, they untied me and were going to take me with the rest of the clan for their sick plan but I managed to make them think that what I have is contagious so they left me here, locked me up alone." She explained slowly while speaking in a very weak voice.

"Is it? Contagious?" He asked, taking a step back prudently.

"No, I have a rare form of diabetes. It can't be cured but Titus tried, not listening when I asked him to stop and let me die in peace… Now I'm near the end." She replied in a very slow and weak voice and that's when Miles realized that she had cut her wrists open.

"What do you know of the Patriots' plans?" Miles asked her, hoping to get an answer before she died.

"The Patriots are sick people. They're inhuman. Monsters that need to be stopped before they destroy everyone and everything that isn't the way they want it to be." She replied before closing her eyes and taking her last breath.

Miles knew that he had to hurry so he tried to look around for something a little clearer about the patriots than "_They're monsters_ _that need to be stopped_".

.

"So you didn't find anything either?" Rachel asked Miles after making him think that she was the one who had looked through the Patriot's papers.

"Just a dying woman claiming they were monsters and inhuman." Miles shook his head.

"I have a hard time believing that, they've done so much good for us all in the couple of days they were here…" Gene said.

"Well, I do. I believe it. And somehow I think that the people in charge right now were the ones who put the Black-out in place. I think it's all a power play and that it was all planned out from even before the blackout." Bella suggested.

"I think you're right." Miles nodded.

"There's someone I could talk with about this. My old friend Ken. I know I can trust him. I'll go and see him tomorrow and see what he knows. He has to know something." Rachel declared and they all agreed that it would be the best option.

"I'll go and spy on the Patriot guard who go out of the town later tonight, see what's going on back there." Miles told them.

"I'll go with you." Bella nodded.

"I don't know if I like you putting yourself in danger Bells…" Miles told her.

"I'll be careful. Plus, you need someone to watch your back while you're busy watching everyone else's back." Bella insisted and he couldn't help but nod.

He couldn't deny her anything. He had known his daughter for only a few months now and he knew that she was already an adult but somehow, she already had him wrapped around her fingers.

.

The next day, Rachel did go to see her friend Ken but it turned out to be a bad idea seeing as he had been working for the Patriots for over 7 years. The biggest shock came when he tried to kill her but fortunately, Rachel managed to break free and ended up killing her old friend Ken in a fight for her own survival. Since they were in his cellar and the ground was just dirt and mud, she buried him there before leaving, taking a bottle of wine with her to pretend she had been there for a reason and that her friend had just given it to her, like he sometimes did.

.

That night, Miles and Bella followed the soldiers as discreetly as they could and ended up watching them in front of a train, opening a wagon with lots of people inside.

"Those are people from Titus's tribe. I remember the women over there, she ran away when we arrived and started shooting." Bella whispered.

"They're the people the Patriots are pretending to capture with lots of hard work every day… They keep them here, kill a couple of them during the night and bring them back to town, pretending to be some sort of heroes… That's disgusting." Miles whispered back.

"I'll go and check over there if there are more people, I'll be right back." Bella whispered and Miles nodded before he tried to get a closer look.

Of course Miles got discovered and ended up trying to run from 2 soldiers after having killed 1 but he got cornered with no way of escaping, about to be shot. He could almost see the end in front of him when suddenly, a sword came through one of the man's chest and Bella appeared behind the fallen body. It gave Miles to opportunity to kill the second guard before they rushed back to town, erasing traces of their escape as they did but leaving the dead bodies behind.

When they got home, Rachel and Gene were waiting for them and after a long discussion where they got over the recent events and everything they knew about the Patriots, they decided to start a resistance to try and destroy to Patriots or, at the very least, make them leave Willoughby unharmed.

.

A few days after their discovery in the train yard, Miles, Rachel and Bella got the news that some Texas Rangers had arrived and that after a short tensed moment, they put their guns down and agreed to try and reach some sort of peaceful treaty with the Patriots.

"The Rangers aren't stupid, they can see that the Patriots are hiding something. I talked to their leader here, Fry, but he can't help us go against the Patriots unless we give him real proof." Miles said.

"How long do we have to find it?" Bella asked him.

"Until the end of the week I think. I'll go back in town and see what I can find out. Be safe Bella." Miles said before he kissed his daughter's forehead and left the house.

"Come back soon." She called after him.

It had become some sort of tradition between them. He always kissed her forehead before he left a room she was in and he always told her to be careful. To be safe. And she always asked him to come back soon.

* * *

**What did you think of this one?**

**Monroe and Charlie come in the next chapter. Will everything be as smooth as it was in the show during this reunion?**

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**Lorelei Candice Black**


	7. Chapter 7

"Hey Bella, come with me for a moment." Miles asked Bella, coming to the garden she was working on.

He looked as excited as a kid on Christmas morning and in a hurry so she nodded, called out to Rachel that she was going on a walk with her father and followed him, wondering what he had seen in town that made him so happy. Maybe he had found a miracle solution to get rid of the Patriots.

"What's going on?" She asked him.

"Charlie's back. She's waiting on the edge of town. She said she has something to show me." He told her.

"Did you tell her about me already?" Bella wondered.

Why else would he come and get her now?

"Of course, I did. It's the first thing I told her when she appeared. She's very excited to meet you. Now come on, hurry. I want to know what it is she wants to show me."

"You looked so excited that for a moment I thought you had found a miracle solution to get rid of the Patriot invasion." Bella told him while they walked.

"Maybe Charlie will have the miracle idea." He smiled.

Bella followed her father until they were on the place they could secretly enter and exit the town from. Charlie was waiting there for them and looked happy to see Bella. After some quick introductions Bella asked her cousin:

"I don't understand, why are you hiding, why aren't you going in to see Aunt Rachel and your grandfather?"

"I'll do that later. Right now, there's something else I need to show Uncle Miles. You want to come with?" Charlie asked her.

"If I'm welcome I'd love to." Bella replied and Charlie nodded, guiding them to a hidden place not too far from the town.

There, they got a big surprise because Monroe was waiting for them. Of course Miles immediately pulled his gun out and Charlie stepped in front of Monroe, whose arms were raised in the air, assuring that he wasn't going to hurt anyone so Bella did her best to calm her father.

"At least listen to what he has to say dad." She pleaded and Miles nodded.

"Dad? Who are you?" Monroe asked her, surprised.

"Bella Swan."

"No way! Renee had a daughter? I never liked that woman, never thought she was good for you. Did you know and keep this hidden from me all this time?" Bass asked his old friend who shook his head.

"No, she came as a surprise a few months ago. Actually, she arrived shortly after Charlie left. You'll get the story later if you're lucky enough to survive. Now, why are you here?" Miles asked, his gun pointing down but still at the ready.

"You can't trust the Patriots." Monroe declared.

"Tell us something we don't know." Bella rolled her eyes.

"Bella already told us they have bounty hunters after Rachel and I. We know. But they're here and they've seen us. I don't know what they want because they haven't tried anything against us yet." Miles added.

"I think it's because they can watch you. I think the only reason they haven't done anything is because they want to try and get Rachel and you on their side." Bella guessed.

"Yeah well, good luck with that." Miles chuckled humorlessly.

"So what is your plan to get rid of them?" Monroe asked.

"Why are you interested?" Miles asked him while Bella and Charlie stood between them to prevent any incident.

"They're blaming me for their bombing Miles. I want them gone. I want them to pay for bombing our city, killing our people." Monroe replied and it was obvious that he was being honest.

"I believe him." Bella whispered to her father.

"Yeah, unfortunately, so do I." Miles said while he put his gun away for good.

"Listen, I tried to kill him and when he could have let me die, he saved my life and brought me back here. I trust him for now." Charlie told her uncle who nodded.

"There's a little cabin not too far from here but it's out of the way, they won't go looking for him there. I only found it because I was looking for a specific herb for the medicines. Monroe will be safe there." Bella suggested and they agreed.

On the way, Miles told Monroe and Charlie everything they had found so far, which wasn't much and what they wanted to do against the Patriots. Monroe agreed that using the Texas' Rangers was the best way to fight the Patriots so far. Texas had a big army and lots of influence everywhere in the old USA. If Texas declared war against those crazy Patriots, everyone would follow.

Once they were in the cabin, Miles had drifted the conversation to Bella and how she found them so the four of them stayed there for a while.

"You traded medicine your mother needed against the truth of your father's identity?" Monroe asked Bella.

"Yeah well, she wasn't exactly competing for Mother of the Year and I had been waiting for this name all my life. I deserved that name, I was willing to do anything." Bella shrugged her shoulders.

Of course Monroe had something on his mind. He wanted Miles to help him find his son and he decided to be honest from the start:

"Miles… I'm here to help but… I also want something…" He started.

"Why aren't I surprised?" Miles rolled his eyes.

"Once we're done with those Patriots, I want you to help me find my son." Monroe asked.

"I… I can do better than that, I can take you to him." Miles replied, looking guilty.

"What? You know where he is? How?" Bass asked, looking betrayed.

"Emma… She contacted me and asked me to take him to her family in Mexico so her parents couldn't put him up for adoption where she'd never see him again… At first I wanted to tell you but she convinced me that you couldn't know, that it was better this way… She had pretty good arguments at the time." Miles tried to explain and Monroe punched him in the stomach.

Immediately, Bella got her sword out and put it at Monroe's throat.

"Wow, wow, wow, Bella, it's okay. I deserved that. Put your sword down, honey. Please." Miles asked her and Bella nodded, still glaring at Monroe.

"You have quick reflexes." Charlie complimented her.

"Thanks… I've had good training. I grew up wanting to be the best at everything so that when I do meet my father, he'd at least have one thing to be proud of." Bella explained.

"And now I have every reason in the world to be proud." Miles told Charlie, making Bella blush.

"Great, Miles 2.0." Monroe rolled his eyes.

"I assure you that she's not a second me. She's so much more and a great doctor." Miles gloated.

"I thought you muttered that I was Miles 2.0?" Charlie asked with a smirk.

"That I agree with." Miles smiled, amused.

"Is she the Bella Swan the resistance was talking about?" Charlie asked her uncle who nodded.

"The reason they couldn't find her at home was because she was looking for me." Miles replied.

"Can we please go back to trying to free your town from the Patriots?" Bass asked and they all nodded.

"I think we should capture one of the soldiers that are at the train yard. Then we get the Rangers there and make the soldier talk. I'm sure you two have experience in interrogating people, right?" Bella suggested and the two men nodded.

"We'll do this tonight then. Bass, you'll be able to find the train yard?" Miles asked his old friend.

"Yes, I saw it on the way here. I'll meet you there at sun down?" He asked.

"Okay, see you there. Charlie, you're coming with us or you still want to avoid your mother?" Miles asked her.

"I'm still mad at her but I want to see grandpa and to get to know Bella better so let's go. See you later Monroe." Charlie replied before she followed her uncle and cousin back in town.

"I think that even if we tell Rachel that Monroe's here, we can't tell her where he's hiding." Bella said on the way.

"Why? I thought you got along well with her…" Miles asked, not understanding her reasons.

"I do, but I also know that she wants Monroe dead for his involvement in Uncle Ben and Danny's deaths. She blames Monroe for everything. Charlie leaving is his fault. The events of the towers are is faults. I think that she even managed to link me not finding you until a few months ago to being Monroe's fault. She won't care about the plans or that he's here to help, she'll either kill him herself or give him up to the Patriots, who will kill him and make a spectacle out of it to impress the Texas Rangers that are still in town." Bella explained.

"I agree with her." Charlie nodded.

"Okay then, you have good arguments kid. I have to agree with you." Miles nodded as they slowly made their way back to town.

* * *

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**Lorelei Candice Black**


	8. Chapter 8

Charlie was nervous and she stopped in her tracks right in front of the door.

"Are you alright?" Bella asked her while Miles walked inside.

"I think so… Let's go before I coward out and leave again. I think hiding with Monroe would be less tensed for me than being here with her." Charlie smiled.

"Are you still mad at her?" Bella asked her.

"Yes. All she knows how to do is leave me and put herself first. When we arrived here, I thought it would be different but I was wrong… I think that she doesn't know how to be a mother. And when I think about everything she did… She can blame Monroe all she wants, to me, it's partly her fault if Danny and dad are dead. Even the black-out… She worked on it, on how to make it happen…" Charlie told her cousin.

"Well, nobody said that you had to speak with her if you don't want to. Go in, say hello, go set your bag in your room and come find me, we'll go for a walk and get to know each other, away from them." Bella suggested.

"Good idea. Thank you." Charlie nodded.

When the girls came inside, Miles was telling Rachel about his plan to capture one of the guards and make him talk to have Texas' help against the Patriots. Like they agreed, he didn't mention Monroe's location.

"Charlie! You're back!" Rachel exclaimed with a soft smile on her face.

"As you can see. Hi Grandpa, I've missed you so much!" Charlie smiled and went to hug her father before she went to her room with her bag, followed by Bella.

.

Bella and Charlie spent the rest of the day bonding, talking together for hours about their lives and their likes before they joined Miles to the train yard to try and capture one of the Patriot soldiers and get him to talk in front of the Texas Rangers. When the three of them arrived, they saw that Monroe was already there, waiting for them.

"Brought the daughter to the party?" Monroe asked Miles.

"He did try to get her to stay behind." Charlie smiled.

"Yeah, like that was going to work." Bella rolled her eyes.

"She's my daughter for a reason." Miles replied proudly.

Quickly, they decided on a plan and put it efficiently into action. To gain some time, Charlie and Bella went right back in town to get one of the Texas Rangers. 3 agreed to go with them and on the way to the hidden hideout where they kept the Patriot, Bella decided to make them pass by the train yard where they saw the people, not only men but also women and a few children, locked in the train and 5 of them getting shot and put aside. Two men to be passed as the bad guys the patriots saved them from and a woman and 2 children to play the victims of the monsters the patriots killed.

"Why are we bringing so many to town tomorrow? Usually 2 or 3 are enough…" One of the soldiers asked.

"That's because of the Texas Ranger. Boss wants to make it look like they need us here, like we're protecting this place." Another one replied.

"If only they knew." He replied with a chuckle.

The 3 Texas rangers frowned and nodded in Bella's direction. Knowing they had seen and heard enough, she continued and lead them to her father.

"What took you so long Bells?" Miles asked his daughter when they arrived.

"We passed by the train yard so they could see everything." Bella explained.

"Good, because this guy refuses to talk." Monroe said.

"With what we've seen so far, we'll be able to convince our superiors to go to war against the Patriot but it might be nice to learn more." The leader of the three, Fry, declared.

"Well then, he's all yours." Monroe smiled as he backed off.

"That's what you think." The patriot said with a smirk before he bit down hard on what seemed to be his own teeth and, quickly, died.

"Seriously? These guys have cyanide teeth?" Bella and Monroe exclaimed at the same time.

"People who have nothing to hide don't need cyanide tooth. That's just another proof." Fry nodded.

"So, do we have a deal? You help us get rid of the Patriots?" Miles asked Fry.

"Yes, we have a deal. It might take a while to convince the boss but it will be done and we'll at least be able to convince him not to make a deal with them until we can show him how bad the patriots truly are." Fry nodded as his 2 colleagues grabbed the dead soldier to bring him home as proof.

"What about Monroe? He didn't send the bombs on Philadelphia and Atlanta, that was the Patriots' doing. I mean, sure, he did some pretty bad things when he was the president of the Monroe republic, but he was a leader then and you can't be on top without stepping on a few toes." Charlie asked.

"True, but he didn't have to cut those toes off." Bella added, bringing everyone's eyes on her.

"Whose side are you on, again?" Monroe asked her.

"I'm just saying, you hurt a lot of people and if I had crossed you a few months ago, I would have killed you without hesitation. But I'm not denying that you seem to have changed." Bella replied as she shrugged her shoulders.

"We'll get the truth out and say the Patriots are responsible for the bombs and that Monroe is innocent of this crime." Fry nodded.

"We're pretty sure they were the ones who planned the black-out in the first place." Bella added.

"Really?" Fry asked her.

"We don't have proofs yet, nothing but speculations… But the one leading the patriots now was very close to Rachel's boss when she and my brother worked for the government. They thought the black-out would be used in other countries, during wars, to stop the weapons. That's what they believed. They had no idea it would ever be used against them, against everyone." Miles explained.

"So she knows how to turn it back on?" Fry asked him.

"She did it once, she was forced by Randall, who worked for the Patriots. That's when Randall dropped the bombs for them before he turned it back off. It can't be turned on again." Miles replied.

"Well, we'll report this to our commanding officer and see what they decide to do about it." Fry declared before he motioned to his rangers to follow him out.

"So… what now?" Bella asked to no one in particular.

"Now, we go home and get some sleep." Miles said, giving her a quick hug.

"What about Monroe?" Charlie asked.

"Yes, what about Monroe?" Monroe asked with a smile.

"I think we have a while before the Texas Rangers come back with their army and declare openly war to the Patriots but we can't leave this town unprotected until then." Miles said.

"What about my son, Miles. You said you'd get me to him." Bass asked.

"How about Charlie and I stay here in town to watch the Patriots while you, dad, you take Monroe to get his son?" Bella suggested.

Monroe and Miles seemed about to agree to her proposition when Charlie shook her head.

"I'm not staying here with mom. Either I go with Uncle Miles or she goes with him." Charlie declared.

"If I have a say in this, I'd rather have mini Miles coming with us rather than Rachel the ball buster." Monroe announced.

"Rachel can't really fight… She wouldn't be much help in town…" Bella shook her head.

"Very well tomorrow morning I'll try and convince Rachel to come with me and Monroe to Mexico. You two girls stay here and stay safe." Miles decided and they all agreed, even if Monroe wasn't too happy about this decision.

.

When they got back home, Rachel was awake and waiting for them, demanding to know what was going on so they explained and Miles proceeded to try and convince her to go with him get Monroe's son in Mexico.

"Look at it this way Aunt Rachel, if you stay here, Charlie will go and will spend all this time with Monroe… You know how it goes in stories. She'd end up falling in love with him and Monroe would be your son in law." Bella said to convince her aunt with a teasing smile on her face as she ignored Charlie's doubtful looks.

It worked, of course, and Rachel ended up agreeing to join Miles and Monroe in their quest while Charlie and Bella would stay in town with Gene to watch over them. Bella was smart and knew how to convince people.

* * *

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**Lorelei Candice Black**


	9. Chapter 9

While Miles, Rachel and Monroe went to look for Connor, Monroe's son, Bella, Charlie and Gene were left to watch out for the town. Aaron had left with his girlfriend to seek a more peaceful place, away from the dangers the Patriots had brought.

Miles and Rachel weren't gone for more than 3 days when the Patriots started acting even weirder than usual.

"Did you see how many tents there was? What do they need them for?" Charlie said as she and Bella came back inside after having watched the enemy for a while.

"It's a quarantine site. There was lots of beds and blankets on one of the wagons." Bella added.

"Why would they do that? I know we have a couple of sick people that aren't getting better but why would they set up something this big for them?" Gene asked.

"Because it's typhus and I think they're the ones spreading it. Remember what that woman told dad? That they wanted to get rid of everyone who wasn't like they wanted? It wouldn't be the first time disease was used in a community to get rid of the weak. The government used it against the Indians a long time ago." Bella explained.

"What can we do? We can't let them do this!" Gene exclaimed.

Bella and Charlie looked at each other before they turned back to Gene:

"We've started hiding food and anything we could need in the house Monroe was hiding in as well as another one on the opposite side of town. I think we need to leave town before they move against us." Bella revealed.

"That's insane! Why would they move against us?" Gene asked them.

"Because Bella and you are doctors and you'd be able to tell people the outbreak is man-made and not natural. We need to leave as soon as possible." Charlie replied just as someone knocked on the door.

It was the patriots. They wanted Bella and Gene to go and help at the quarantine site to deal with the outbreak. Bella made Charlie hide so she could go to their hideouts and didn't fight the men. As good of a fighter as she was, they were outnumbered and she would have lost anyway. Pretending she needed to get her medical bag, which was true, she whispered to Charlie to pick up everything she could and go wait for Miles to come back in Monroe's old hidden cabin. They didn't want to risk her getting sick.

The next couple of weeks, while Miles, Rachel and Monroe looked for Connor and convinced him to go with them _(just like in the show)_, Bella and Gene did their best to heal the sick while they knew there wasn't any ways to cure it without the right vaccine. Charlie stayed out of sight but still spent her days watching over her grandfather and her cousin from a small hill above the camp. She wanted to be able to give her uncle a good report when they finally came back. He would be mad enough that Bella was in the camp, at the mercy of the patriots, as it was.

Bella and Charlie exchanged messages whenever they could. Bella would hide a piece of paper under a rock at the edge of the quarantine camp and Charlie would go and get it at night, reply and hid it back before morning came. That's how Charlie learned that Bella found out that there was indeed a cure but that the Patriots had hidden it.

That day, 2 weeks after Miles and Monroe had left, Bella also informed her that Gene was sick and that she was worried for him. Because of his advanced age, he wouldn't have much time before him.

.

Charlie was about to go back out to watch over her cousin when Miles, Monroe, Rachel and a young man looking incredibly like Monroe came in.

"Charlie, what are you doing here?" Rachel asked her.

"The Patriots created a typhus outbreak. Grandpa, Bella and I were ready to get out of town, we've even put provisions here and on the abandoned farm house uncle Miles showed us, saying it would be a good hideout but a few Patriots came with Truman, asking Bella and Grandpa to go and help in the quarantine camp. They couldn't refuse. Bella told me to hide and wait for you to come back. I've been keeping watch every day and every night. Bella leaves me notes when she can." Charlie started.

"Typhus outbreak? I don't know if I should shake those guys' hands or kill them." Monroe rolled his eyes.

"I suggest killing them all very painfully." Miles replied with a dark look.

"Bella said she overheard Truman talking about a cure or a vaccine he had but she doesn't know where it is. She hasn't left me any messages in about 3 days…"

"Why is that? Is she alright?" Miles asked her, worried for his daughter.

"Yes, she's fine but Grandpa is sick. She spends all her time trying to help him get better but without the vaccine… There's nothing she can do. He's going to die if we don't get it. I wanted to go and look for it myself but I figured it'd be safer to wait for you to come back." Charlie explained.

The group talked and decided on a plan:

Miles and Monroe would take Truman as their hostage and they would infect him with the virus. Then Connor would go, in a patriot uniform, in Truman's office with the man himself to protect him and he would get the cure with Miles and Monroe ready to shoot if other people came inside the room. Then he'd get back to the others and bring Rachel and Charlie inside to break Gene and Bella out while Miles and Monroe would keep watch with sniper's guns in case they needed rescue. Then they would all head to the farmhouse hideout.

.

Connor managed to do what his father asked of him without many problems and he grabbed all the doses of the cure before he left Truman knocked out and drove the wagon in the quarantine site and to the right tent with Charlie and Rachel hidden. The three of them walked inside and Bella looked up, happy. At first, she didn't say anything because her eyes locked with Connor's and it made her blush. He was handsome, there was no denying it and she had to force her eyes back to her cousin and her aunt before she embarrassed herself.

"Thank god you're here. Gene is right here. Quick. He doesn't have much time left." She said and while Rachel gave her father a dose of the cure, Bella showed Charlie how to dose it and give it to everyone else.

Bella went to cure the people by the door where Connor stood watch and she decided to break the ice.

"So, you're Monroe's son, right?" She asked him.

"Really, you want to do meet and greet now?" He asked her, incredulous.

"I can do two things at the same time." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay, that's everyone." Rachel said after a couple of minutes.

"Take all the left over bottles, just leave this one." Bella said as she pointed to the bottle of vaccine where only one dose was left inside.

"Why?" Connor asked her while Charlie and Rachel grabbed the bottles.

"We leave one behind so Truman can cure himself and so people don't see us as monster. We take the rest of it with us because it's very valuable and we'll be able to exchange it against lots of useful things." Bella explained while Charlie and her carried Gene to the wagon.

They managed to leave the camp quite easily and picked up Monroe and Miles on the way.

"You're okay?" Miles asked Bella with a hug while Monroe sat next to his son.

"Yes, don't worry, I'm not sick." She smiled.

"Was there a lot of death?" Rachel asked.

"Yes. The most sickening thing is that the ones who got sick are either old or have some sort of handicap or problem. Alcoholic, prostitute, deaf, blind, old… They all got infected…" Bella replied while she shook her head.

"These people are really sick…" Monroe shook his head.

"Let's hurry and settle in the safe house. Bella looks like she could use with a few hours of sleep." Charlie asked Conor who was driving.

"When's the last time you slept?" Miles asked his daughter while Connor fastened the pace.

"Before Gene got sick. I couldn't sleep and risk them taking him in the middle of the night." Bella shook her head.

"Well, you can rest now. You're safe." Miles told her.

"As soon as we've arrived." She nodded.

Miles didn't argue with the fact that he'd like her to sleep now and instead told her and Charlie what had happened in Mexico.

"He whipped his father?" Bella asked, surprised.

"I didn't have a choice." Connor argued.

"It's okay, it was the least I could do for him." Monroe shook his head.

"Well, you can't argue with the fact that Monroe's changed, right Aunt Rachel?" Bella asked her.

"She even risked her life to come and rescue the two of us." Bass insisted, making Rachel shake her head before she replied:

"Don't make me regret it."

It made them all chuckle and they decided to wait until Gene got better before they planned anything else.

* * *

**I know I go fast over a few facts but it's because it's the same as in the show. **

**Please review?**

**Check out my other stories please!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	10. Chapter 10

When Bella woke up, she realized that she was inside the farm house, lying on the floor with a blanket covering her and something soft under her head. Closing her eyes once more to enjoy the fact that she had nothing urgent to do and that her father was talking with Monroe by her side, she realized that she had missed her father greatly while he was in Mexico and that she once more felt safe.

"You can't be serious!" Miles was whispering to whatever Bass had told him before Bella woke up.

"Oh, please, don't tell me that the thought didn't cross your mind! They'd be great together." Monroe insisted, awaking Bella's curiosity.

Where they talking about the patriots? Who would be great together?

"You really think that your son and my daughter would make a good couple?" Miles asked his friend and the tone of his voice told Bella that he wasn't as doubtful as he was trying to sound.

"Had things been different, if we had been given the opportunity to raise them both, I'm sure it's the way it would have gone." Monroe replied confidently.

"They would have been raised as cousins, because we we're like brothers." Miles reminded his friend and Bella noticed that her father used the present tense, not the past. He still loved Bass as a brother.

"Well, then maybe it's a good thing we only found them now."

"What even brought this on?" Miles asked him and Bella felt his hand stroking her hair softly and it made her smile.

"You really didn't see the way Connor was looking at Bella when you carried her inside after she fell asleep? I can tell he likes her already." Monroe replied and Bella tried to fight the blush that threatened to appear on her face.

"It doesn't mean they'll end up together…"

"Would you really be against the idea of them together?" Monroe asked Miles and Bella waited anxiously for the answer, not knowing why it made her so nervous in the first place.

"All I want is for her to be safe and happy. If he makes her happy then no, I won't object to them being together, but the fact that he's your son won't save him if he ever hurts her." Miles replied seriously.

"I can't believe how protective of her you are."

"She's my daughter and I love her. I would go to the end of the earth to save her and ensure her happiness." Miles replied and Bella was moved by that.

"I can see it, you know. Bella's special. I want you to know Miles, that I'm here too. No matter what, you'll always be my best friend, my family and that makes your daughter family too. If anything ever happens to her, I'll be by your side to help her." Monroe replied honestly.

"Thanks. So, how did your talk with Connor go?"

"Pretty well. He's starting to open up to me. He even admitted to being '_intrigued_' by Bella." Bass said with a smile in his voice.

"So that's what brought up the subject of Bella and him together. You wanted to make sure I wouldn't hunt your son down if he tried to make a move on Bella." Miles nodded.

"Of course. He's my son. And come on, your daughter and my son… I'm convinced they'd make a cute couple. A much better one that if he was to fall for Charlie."

"Why's that? What do you have against Charlie?"

"Nothing! I just think that she's not the kind of woman I want with my son. She's the kind of person who won't be able to settle down, she'll always go and look for a cause to fight for."

"Maybe…" Miles replied and Bella decided to let them know that she was awake at that moment.

She slowly sat up and looked around the room, her eyes landing on Monroe and her father before she smiled at them softly.

"Ha, the sleeping beauty is up." Monroe joked, bringing Miles' eyes on her.

"How are you feeling Bells?" Her father asked her.

"Much better, thanks. I think I needed that sleep" She smiled and her father handed her a plate of food.

"You sure did, you slept for over 12 hours. Miles was worried sick, he was afraid you had caught the disease but Rachel reassured him, saying it was just exhaustion." Monroe told her with a smile.

"How's Gene doing?" She asked no one in particular.

"Getting better, don't worry. We're all fine now." Miles reassured her.

"Good. So… This was Connor, your son?" She asked Monroe to make conversation.

"He didn't introduce himself?" Bass asked her.

"It wasn't really the right condition for it with all the sick and dying people around us and the fact that we had to act quickly before the patriots found us out. There wasn't much time for talking." Bella smiled.

She spoke with her father and his best friend while she finished her plate. She listened to them tell her what had happened in Mexico and what happened in the last 12 hours she had spent sleeping.

When she was done eating she decided to go outside to clean up a bit. She felt like she really needed it to erase the feeling she had that she had the typhus virus crawling all over her skin. She was kneeling in front of a bucket of water, and a bar of soap by her side. The sun was shining brightly right above her when Connor came up to her from the side.

"Hey, so you're Miles' daughter, right?" He asked her.

"Yep. He only found out about me a few months ago though. Before I found him, he didn't even know I existed." She replied.

"Then we have something in common." He smiled at her.

She could see that he was trying to make conversation, to be open with her and show her that he was open to more conversation. The memory of what his father told hers while they believed her to be she asleep came back to her and it made her blush.

He was interested in her…

"More than you think." She smiled back before she walked back inside.

She didn't know if she could trust him yet. Sure, he had helped them against the Patriots, but was he a mini Monroe in the good way or did he get all of his father's bad traits? She didn't want to let herself too close to someone who could break her trust, or her heart.

A few minutes later, while Rachel took care of her father, Charlie, Bella, Monroe, Connor and Miles were gathered outside.

"So, what's the plan to get rid of these Patriots? We obviously can't wait for Texas to wake up, we have to act as soon as possible or half the town will be dead." Bella said.

"I might know of someone back in New Vegas, a warlord named Duncan. We might be able to buy some men." Monroe suggested.

"How would we pay for them?" Miles asked him.

"I'll find a way. Leave that to me." Bass replied confidently.

"The vaccines." Bella intervened.

"What?" Charlie asked, reflecting all of their thoughts.

"We still have all the left over vaccine doses. It's very valuable. It might get us a few more men. It has to be worth more than diamonds…" Bella replied.

"I have some diamonds stashed somewhere safe as well. I wasn't able to get to them before Charlie and these Bounty hunters got me. We'll have that too and I think I'll be able to win some more." Bass explained.

"I guess it'll have to do." Miles nodded.

"So, who's going?" Rachel asked from behind them, letting them know that she had heard everything.

"Connor and I will go." Monroe offered and his son nodded, welcoming the opportunity to learn more about his father during this trip.

"I should stay here and keep an eye on the Patriots." Miles said.

"And the second eye on Aunt Rachel." Bella joked, making Charlie and Bass chuckle while Miles and Rachel looked away.

"I'll stay here to keep an eye on the kids then." Charlie added with a smile.

"Are you sure?" Bella asked her.

"Yes… Earlier I was spying on the patriot camp and I think I saw Jason… I want to check it out. If it's him, them we might be able to use him to fight them all." Charlie smiled.

"I'll go with them then. I'll be able to dose the vaccine and who knows, a healer can be useful when dealing with warlords, even ones who are supposed to be friendly." Bella nodded, not giving anyone a choice and making Miles begging her to be safe and asking Monroe to keep an eye on his daughter and to keep her safe.

"Please Bass, keep an eye on her and don't let anything happen to her." Miles pleaded.

"Don't worry Miles. She's family now, remember? Connor and I will keep her safe, right Connor?" Bass assured them.

"Of course." Connor nodded.

"You know I can defend myself dad. We'll all be fine and we'll be back soon." Bella added as her father pulled her to the side so the others couldn't hear what they were saying.

"I'm not sure I like the idea of you going all the way to New Vegas with Monroe…" Miles shook his head.

"I'll be fine dad, don't worry. Plus, I think we both know that Monroe and his son are planning something." Bella smiled.

"What makes you think that?" Miles asked her.

"Because it's Monroe? And I saw the two of them whispering together earlier." She smiled, making him chuckle.

"You might be right. You don't trust him then?" he asked her curiously.

"I trust that right now he wants to help us against the Patriots but I'm sure that after that, he'll try to get his republic back with his son by his side. I also know that someone has to be on top and it might as well be someone that we know and trust. I think that if I go with them, I might be able to convince them to include us in their plans." Bella explained.

"You want to get the Monroe republic back with them?" Her father asked her.

"I think it would be best, this way we'd be able to help the two of them stay in the right tracks. Prevent them from going back to being as dark as it was before…" Bella told him.

"You might be right… And like you said, someone has to be on top and if helping Bass take his republic back can prevent someone like the patriots, or worst, to take power, then we should do it…" Miles nodded.

"So, when we're in New Vegas, I can tell him that you agree to help as long as we have a say in things?"

"Yes, you can and I'll try to convince Rachel and Charlie that it's the right things to do." Miles nodded.

After that, Bella hugged her father and went to get her back pack to join the 2 Monroe men on their travel to New Vegas.

* * *

**What do you think of this new chapter?  
**

**What would you like to see happening next? In New Vegas, Bella will meet someone from her past, who will it be?**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	11. Chapter 11

The road was long but they all managed to rest on the way by taking turn driving and once they arrived in New Vegas, the three of them were ready to defend themselves in case it was needed. They had talked a lot on the way and got to know each other. Connor and his father had talked while Bella slept. Bella and Connor had talked while Monroe slept and Bella and Monroe had talked while Connor slept.

Bass could see how different Bella was from Charlie and he understood how Miles could get overprotective of her so soon after meeting her, he, too, already hated the idea that she could get in harm's way.

"So, this is New Vega?" Bella asked as she looked around herself.

Bass had parked their wagon outside of town and they were now walking inside the busy city, making their way slowly between tents, stands and people.

"You've never been here before?" Bass asked her.

"No, I had never left my hometown until I went to search for dad. After that, the biggest cities I saw were Philadelphia and Chicago, but it was very different… Much… classier than this. And that's saying something." Bella replied while making a disgusted face at a sexy woman trying to charm men into giving her their money. She couldn't help but be happy when Connor didn't give the woman a second look to keep his eyes on her as they talked.

"Classier?" Connor smirked.

"You know what I mean… Here it's… Gambling, alcohol, sex, violence… Not exactly where you'd like your children to grow up." Bella shook her head.

"Well, we're not staying. We're here on business. Nothing else. And it's not exactly the kind of place where people settle down to have a family." Monroe replied.

They walked some more until Bella stopped in her tracks and turned around, stepping to the side to hide behind a pile of boxes in front of a tent. It took a few seconds for Connor to realize that she wasn't next to him anymore and he warned his father. They quickly found her, leaning against the wood of the dirty boxes, her eyes closed and breathing hard.

"What's going on, why did you stop?" Connor asked her.

Bella was pale and her face was stuck between fear and anger. Both Monroe men were glad it wasn't directed at them because they were sure it could lead to very bad things for the recipient of that look.

"Bella?" Bass asked her with the concern of a caring uncle.

"I… I saw someone… I just need a minute to gather my thoughts. That's all. I'll be fine." Bella replied as she shook her head slowly.

"Who is it?" Connor asked her.

"Do you want us to take care of it?" Bass asked her, imagining that it was what Miles would be asking if he were here with them.

"No one of importance. I'm okay now. Let's go." Bella replied with a new determination on her face.

"Are you sure?" Connor asked her, concerned.

"Yes." She nodded with a small smile.

"Who was it that you saw anyway?" Bass asked her as they started walking again.

Bella was about to reply when the one she was trying to avoid appeared in front of her and spoke.

"Bella… Well, I'll be damned! It's the last place I expected to find you. Dad told me you left town shortly after the flu outbreak got under control…" The man who spoke was about Bella and Connor's age, tall and with short copper hair.

He had been speaking with a hooker when he spotted Bella, thinking it was a sign from God that he needed to get back together with her again. He made the mistake of looking back at the hooker to tell her to go away and Bella had disappeared. Luckily for him, she wasn't far.

"Edward… I wish I could say that it's good to see you but we both know that I'd be lying." Bella snapped back, trying to keep walking while Connor and his father stood on each side of her protectively but Edward was blocking the way.

She noticed that Connor was glaring at Edward.

"Look who's with you. A little hypocritical of you to be wandering around with Sebastian Monroe when you broke up with me because I joined his militia, isn't it?" Edward smirked, trying to get closer to her.

"That's close enough." Connor snapped, getting his sword out to keep Edward to a good distance of Bella.

"I didn't break up with you because you joined Monroe's militia Edward, even if I frowned upon that fact. I broke up with you because joining the militia had changed you into an un-sufferable jerk and because you were cheating on me with whores everywhere you went. Now if you don't mind, we have business to get to." Bella replied, trying to move forward.

"My father told me that you left town to look for your father… Did you give up and decide to gamble your life away in the little piece of sinner's heaven?" Edward insisted.

"If you must know Edward, I did find my father." Bella started but was interrupted by Monroe.

"Okay, what's going on here Bella? Who is he besides an ex member of my militia?" His tone was overprotective and Edward was starting to wonder who he was to Bella.

Was Bella with Monroe now? Was he her boyfriend? And who was the younger man?

"Edward here is an ex. The biggest mistake of my life. Dad would probably be happy if you ended up punching him in the face." Bella replied with a small smile on her face.

"So you did find your father… And Monroe is working for him? How the mighty have fallen." Edward chuckled, mocking Monroe happily.

"Actually, my father is Miles Matheson… Yes, THAT Miles Matheson." Bella smirked when she saw Edward pale at the mention of the name he had heard so often.

"Her father is my best friend, like a brother to me." Bass added.

"But he tried to kill you." Edward reminded his ex leader.

"Every family has fights. We've made up." Bass added as he stepped closer to the young man, slightly in front of Bella.

"Listen Bella, I just want to talk to you. Just… Hear me out okay? Please?" Edward asked her, giving her the puppy look her knew she could never resist and that ended up making her go back together with him several times.

"Fine. Talk." She nodded.

"Not here. Not with them here." Edward shook his head.

"We're not going anywhere." Connor shook his head.

"They're not going anywhere." Bella replied at the same time as Connor, making Bass smile.

"Who are they to you anyway?" Edward asked her, probably trying to show her that he cared about her.

"She's my niece." Bass replied in a 'do not discuss' tone that reminded Edward of the days when Monroe was a great leader.

"What about him?" Edward asked, pointing his chin towards Connor.

"He's my son." Monroe replied proudly.

"He's my boyfriend." Bella improvised at the same time as Monroe spoke.

It was silent for a while and Bass looked down to hide his smile while Connor pretended her announcement didn't shock him at all.

"Sebastian Monroe's son is your boyfriend? That's ironic… Did you already give it up to him or are you planning on making him wait as long as you made me wait?" Edward asked, angering Bella further.

"Well, unlike you, he didn't have to force me into it, did he?" Bella snapped, her eyes glaring daggers at the young man she used to love.

"What? What's this? He forced you?" Bass exclaimed, getting his gun out and pointing it at Edward.

Looking around, Bella expected to see a crowd forming around them, attracted by their shouting, the sword that Connor held against Edward's stomach or the Gun Monroe pointed at Edward but they barely paid them any attention. She guessed that this kind of scenes were probably usual in a town like this. She wondered if they would care if a fight actually started but on her left, a few paces away from them, three men where punching each other and nobody cared either.

"He did, and then he guilt-ed me into thinking that it was only natural, that he deserved it and that it was my role to give it to him." Bella replied, looking down while Connor placed the arm that wasn't holding his sword around her shoulder.

"You got your revenge when you told my father everything and he told me to get out." Edward reminded her.

"You. Forced. Yourself. On. Her." Monroe growled before he gave Bella his gun and started punching the man that used to serve him.

Edward was young and strong but Monroe was still strong and smarter than the younger man. Edward soon found himself on the floor with a broken nose and several bruises on his face. He had a couple of broken ribs as well as a bleeding lips. Bass's only injury was a sore fist.

"So Bella, wanna play doctor?" Edward asked her, his smirk never leaving his face, even though he was in a lot of pain.

"Go to Hell, asshole." Bella snapped before she kicked her right foot into his private parts.

"Let's go, we've wasted enough time with this one." Bella suggested.

"This isn't over Bella. You'll pay for this! I promise you, you'll pay for this, all of you!" Edward yelled after them.

"You're okay Bella?" Connor asked her when they were far enough from Edward.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you though, both of you. Edward always seems to have this hold on me… If you hadn't been there, I might have fallen back into old habits." Bella said to the two of them.

"Well, I did promise Miles that I'd take good care of you." Bass smiled softly.

"So, I'm your boyfriend now?" Connor asked Bella with a smirk.

"Sorry… I just… I just knew that if I said I had a boyfriend, he'd give up faster." Bella replied with a blush.

"Don't worry, I don't mind… but we should probably play along just in case he's watching us…" Connor suggested, making his father smile with pride at his son's move.

"I think he's right, you never know who this Edward knows in this town. Until we leave, it might be safer to pretend the two of you are an item." Bass added.

"You're right… It might be safer." Bella nodded as she grabbed Connor's hand with a smile, knowing that Bass was just trying to help his son along with getting the girl he wanted.

They walked for a couple more minutes before they found themselves in front of a big tent that seemed to be hosting a bar and a casino.

"Here we are. Duncan's place. Let's get us some men, shall we?" Bass said as they stood in front of the tent, making Bella chuckle.

"What?" Bass asked her.

"Nothing, it's just… When you say it like that… '_let's get us some men_'… People might jump to conclusions…" Bella suggested, a big, teasing smile on her face as Connor chuckled along with her.

"Very funny. I'm glad to notice that you're in a better mood. It must be Connor's reassuring presence by your side." Bass teased back, making Bella blush as she kept smiling.

* * *

_**Bella's ex came back in the picture! Do you think this is his only appearance or will he make good on his revenge promise?**_

_**Don't forget to leave a little (or big) review on your way out.**_

_**I know I'm taking longer every time to update but the inspiration I had for this story vanished... I'm trying to keep it going but I don't think it will go much further... I might just end it temporarily in one place and make it longer later... We'll see... There will at least be a couple more chapters though.**_

_**Lorelei Candice Black**_


	12. Chapter 12

Monroe was the first to enter the big tent, followed closely by Connor and Bella. Connor had his arm around Bella's shoulders, declaring her his for all those who might get the wrong idea in their heads. He wasn't deluding himself, he knew that this was all temporary and far from being real but he still wanted to enjoy it as much as possible in the mean time.

While they followed Bass, Bella kept her hand on her sword and looked all around her, taking notice of every single detail that could prove useful later if they needed to rush out. A back door, a cane on the floor, a hooded man trying to hide by the bar… She tried to take as many details as possible in.

Monroe led them to the very back of the tent, stopping a couple of times on the way to greet some people he probably knew from before and entering first through a second set of door.

"We're here." Monroe announced as he walked through the second door.

They found themselves in front of a group of people playing poker.

"Duncan. Long time no see." Bass said, making everyone turn his way.

"Monroe… I thought you'd be smart enough not to come back here, especially after the way you left." The woman replied, standing up as several men around her took their gun out.

In response, Bella and Connor took their guns out as well, at least before Monroe asked them to put them away and soothed things over.

"I thought Duncan was a man." Connor mentioned.

"Because women can't be warlords? Seriously?" Bella snapped, earning a smile from Duncan.

"Listen Duncan, I just need to buy a few men… You've probably heard of the Patriots… They're bad and need to be stopped. I need a few men to stop them in Texas." Bass told her.

"And I should lend you some men out of the goodness of my heart?" She asked him.

"We can pay." Bass insisted.

"30 a head." Duncan announced.

"Seriously? Don't you think this is a little bit over the top?" He asked her.

"30, take it or leave it." She shook her head.

"How much do you think a vaccine against the disease the Patriots are spreading to get rid of the people they don't like is worth?" Bella asked as Monroe was about to say something else.

"It depends what this disease is." Duncan smiled at Bella, obviously more open to her than to Monroe.

"Deadly. It's typhus, a fatal disease. I've got about 30 doses of the vaccine left. I can show you how to measure it and inject it. How many men would that be worth?" Bella asked.

"I'd say 2 doses for 1 man. Plus 1 man because I like you." Duncan smiled.

"Sold." Bella nodded as she shook Duncan's hand and they made plan to make the trade the next day, in Duncan's camp.

"Well, 15 men is better than nothing." Connor declared as they found themselves out of the casino tent and walking down the street once more.

"We can get more. I can get a few diamonds I left behind. That should be enough for 4 more men." Monroe explained.

"So we'd go back with 20 men… They're trained fighters, it would be good." Bella nodded.

"I wished we'd be able to get more. 20 men isn't enough against the Patriots and we can't wait on the Rangers to wake up." Monroe shook his head.

"Well, this is a city made to win money fast. We just need to find a risk-less way to get more diamonds quickly." Bella encouraged them.

"How do we even do that? We can't gamble it, it's too risky." Connor replied as his hand found its way around her waist once more since they were still pretending they were a couple.

"Actually, I think I know how…" Monroe breathed out and his traveling companions turned to look at him.

"How?" Connor asked him.

"Fighting and winning… That's what I did before Charlie found me… I can get enough money to buy 5 more men in one night." Monroe nodded.

"Isn't that risky for you?" Bella asked him.

"Well, I know how to survive and I guess it's good that we have a doctor with us." He smiled.

"Let's just hope I'm not needed then." She shook her head with a smile.

"When are we going to do that?" Connor asked, resigned.

"Tomorrow. Tonight I'll go get the money I already have hidden and plan for tomorrow's fight. You two go back to the wagon and set up camp. We'll be better off out of town for the night." Monroe ordered and they nodded, following his orders.

.

Bella and Connor did as Monroe asked and set up camp. They light the fire and Bella started to cook their dinner on it when Connor came up behind her and slowly brought his hand around her waist and buried his face in her neck. She was about to protest that she wasn't that kind of girl, that she was just pretending in town and that she didn't mean to mislead him when he whispered in her ear:

"Play along, your boyfriend followed us out there and he's watching. He's in the bushes next to the tree." Connor told her and Bella relaxed, reassured.

"Well, let's give him something to watch." She replied, turning around and standing up so that she was now in his arms, facing him.

"And what do you have in mind?" He smirked.

"Something like this." She whispered before she started kissing him.

She didn't know how long they got lost in the kiss but before she knew it, Monroe was back and complaining:

"Hey, what are you doing here you little piece of shit? Get away from here before I start to get really angry!" Bella and Connor broke away from each other, taking a step back to see Monroe with his sword out and Edward running away.

"And you two, please, don't get too serious before Bella's back on Miles' watch." He pleaded.

"We... We weren't… We knew that Edward was watching… We were just…" Bella stuttered.

"…Giving him something to watch." Connor told his father with a happy smile on his face.

"Hum… Dinner is ready." Bella blushed.

"Good, I'm starving." Both Monroe men declared.

While they ate, Bass told them that he had gotten the money and arranged several fights the next day with his old boss. That would be enough to get him about 5 more men, maybe more if the bets were good.

"Okay, well, that's good then. Now there's another subject I want to bring up." Bella started.

"What is it?" Bass asked her.

"Dad and I know that you're planning to take the Monroe Republic back once we're rid of the Patriots. I managed to convince dad that someone would always need to be on top, might as well be someone he knows. We just ask that you do it differently this time, better. Dad and I will be by your side and help as much as we can but we want to have a say in things." Bella declared.

"You're the one who figured it out, weren't you?" Bass asked her.

"I… Yes." She nodded.

"And Miles isn't mad? You're not angry?" Connor asked her, concerned that he might lose his chance to win her over.

"No, not really. I think that seeing what the Patriots were capable of was enough for him. I just wanted it to be clear between us…" Bella replied.

"Well, I'm a bit surprised. I figured Miles would want to settle somewhere nice with Rachel the ball buster." Bass joked.

"Well, he's working on convincing her and Charlie of your cause. I guess we'll see just how much she cares about him when we get back." Bella shrugged her shoulders.

After that, they went back to talking about lighter subjects and after clearing up their dishes, they went to sleep, taking turns keeping watch to ensure their safety in case Edward came back. Monroe took the first watch and smiled when he noticed his son and Bella settling close to each other.

They might think that right now there was just pretending between them but Bass could see that something had changed between them. They wouldn't pretend for long.

* * *

**What did you think? **

**Review please?  
**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	13. Chapter 13

After his watch, Bass woke up his son so he could take his, finally allowing the elder Monroe to get some rest. When Bass woke up the next morning, Connor was still keeping watch but instead of watching their surroundings, he was watching Bella with a dreamy look in his eyes.

"Didn't have it in you to wake her up to take the next watch, did you?" Bass whispered and Connor nodded, making his father smile.

"I wasn't that tired anyway." Connor replied as his eyes never left Bella one second to look at his father.

"Of course you weren't." Bass shook his head with an amused smile.

"What?" Connor asked his father, looking at him for the first time since the man woke up and not understanding the look he was receiving.

"Nothing… I'm sure you were happy to know her father and her will be joining us when we get the Republic back... That we'll have to spend lots of time with them…" Bass shrugged his shoulder, a knowing smile still plastered on his face.

"Like you weren't. I heard you and Miles talking about what life would have been like if the two of you had raised Bella and I, how we would have grown up to love each other… You want me with Bella almost as much as I want to be with her because it would be an excuse for you to stay in Miles' life in case you have another fall out." Connor replied confidently.

"True. Now come on Prince Charming, wake up your sleeping beauty, it's time to eat and make preparations for the day." Monroe chuckled, enjoying these sweet father-son conversations and grateful for these moments he treasured dearly.

Of course he wished he had been given the opportunity to raise his son and to spend more time with him but the moments he was living with him right now were more important to him than anything else. He loved his son more than anything and understood how Miles could have felt so much for his daughter so quickly. It was in the blood, flowing through the heart.

As he watched Connor waking Bella up softly, with sweet words and gentle touches, the elder Monroe smiled. Miles's daughter and his son would make a cute couple soon. They just needed to have an honest conversation and admit that none of them was pretending, that Edward's annoying presence was only an excuse for them.

"Coffee dad?" Connor asked him.

"Sure." Monroe nodded, smiling at the fact that his son had called him '_dad_'.

.

While Bella was eating her breakfast with her two Monroe companions in New Vegas, Charlie was trying to decide if she should trust that Jason was here to help them or if he was somehow working for the patriots with his father. He had willingly given them lots of information, including how the Patriots brain washed the young adults to force them to work with them.

"I thought you liked him." Miles told her as they tried to make a decision.

"I do, but I don't want that to influence us. I want us to make the decision with a clear head. I don't want my… feelings…"

"… or hormones?" Miles smirked.

"…to influence a decision that should be made with a cool head." Charlie explained, ignoring her uncle's remark.

"Well, I think we can trust him. He didn't have to warn us about the numbers he had tattooed near his eye. We can always stay on our guards and watch out for his father but as long as he's here on his own, I think we can trust him." Miles told her with a nod.

"Okay… But if he betrays us, it's on you." Charlie replied.

"Don't worry Charlie, I've seen the way he looks at you… He's not only here to stop the Patriots." Miles replied with a teasing smile before they regained the main room to tell Jason that they were giving him a chance and that he could stay with them.

.

In New Vegas, everyone was speaking of the fact that Monroe would be fighting that night and it felt like the city was vibrating with excitement.

"I just heard someone bet two horses and 30 diamonds on this fight… This is crazy!" Bella shook her head as she came back from getting them some drinks.

As soon as she was near them once again, Connor slipped his arm around her waist.

"Your ex isn't one to give up it seems… He's standing over there." Connor told her, pointing to the other side of the place.

"I don't understand what he wants after all this time… Why can't he just let go?" Bella shook her head.

"Well, it looks like I'll be able to give him a lesson later today." Bass informed them as he came back from speaking with his old boss.

"Why's that?" Bella asked him curiously.

"He just signed up to fight me tonight." He replied.

"How does it work exactly?" Bella asked him.

"People sign in. I fight them, one after the other, until I fall and can't get up. If I fall, the winner fights the others." Bass explained.

"And you think that you can hold on for long?" Connor asked him.

"I usually manage to fight 6 or 7 men… Sometimes more. It depends on their size and what's asked of me. Sometimes I was asked to lose on purpose. Not this time though, this time I fight to win and I need to hold on as long as I can. The longer I can stand, the more I can win." He explained.

"I'll prepare my medical bag and keep it by my side during the fight then. I'll be ready as soon as there's a break." Bella nodded.

"Thanks." Bass nodded.

"Can't I sign in and fight you when you feel you're about to lose? This way I'll be able to take over and fight a few more men…" Connor suggested.

"No!" Bella and Bass exclaimed.

If Bass didn't want Connor to fight because he wanted to protect his son, Bella's motives were different and it made Connor smile to know that she cared about him.

"Not that I doubt your abilities as a fighter son, but I'd rather get hit than you. I don't want to risk you getting hurt." Bass added while Bella tried to give herself composure by brushing some invisible dust from her pants.

"Shouldn't we go and see Duncan this afternoon like we planned yesterday?" Bella asked.

"No, I saw one of her men and told him that we'd come after the fight." Bass shook his head.

"Oh okay… Well, let's get you something solid to eat then. You can't fight on an empty stomach." Bella decided, not feeling like staying in the tent all day, waiting for Edward to leave.

"I can't eat too much either or I'll end up giving it all back during the fight." He smiled.

"Well, you'd be assured to win that one." Connor chuckled.

"Isn't that considered as fighting dirty?" Bella asked with an amused smile.

"The two of you are hilarious." Bass rolled his eyes, amused as well.

* * *

**So, what do you think? Will Edward fight Monroe? **

**Review please?**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


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